Thursday, September 16, 2010

Crownies!

Or brookies. Or cooknies. Or, perhaps, crowkies even.

Whatever they should be called, I decided today that I wanted a brownie. And a cookie. At the same time. Without having to make both. I needed something that would satisfy both desires with a minimal amount of work and ingredients. We are on a budget in this house, after all, and there is a 1 year old running around to care for.

So, I set about looking at many recipes, and finally settled on a sugar cookie type recipe combined with some cocoa.

The dough was sticky and dark and looked like brownie on the beater. I had to resist eating it out of the bowl.

3 c flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 c butter

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 c unsweet cocoa

Preheat oven to 350. Mix flour, salt and backing powder in a bowl. In mixer, blend butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and cocoa. Be sure to go slow so you don't end up sucking in a cloud of cocoa (it's a lot less pleasant than it sounds).

Add flour mixture in until you have a lovely chocolately dough. Wrap it in plastic and stick in the fridge for an hour at least.

Roll out the dough (whenever I say that, I have a flash back to "Perfect Strangers"...the episode where Balki makes Bibibobkas?) on a floured counter OR use confectioners sugar. I do the sugar so that the scraps that keep getting re-rolled don't become tough cookies.

"When you're rollin' out the dough, just be sure you roll it slooow..."

Bake on parchment paper (I used natural wax since it was all I had) for 8 to 11 minutes, until edges are firm and the centers soft. The cookies don't grow, so don't think they aren't cooked. They look almost the same going in as out.

Cool on a rack, if you have one. Or be ghetto like me and put them wherever you can.

The best part about the finished product is the variety of ways you can enjoy these.

As the top and bottom of an ice cream sandwich. With peanut butter. Dipped in whipped cream.

So many delicious possibilities. But just as they are with milk works perfectly too.